Pain is a normal and everyday part of our lives, and one that is unlikely to disappear any time soon. But while it is a really common experience, it’s never going to be pleasant, and it’s always the kind of thing that is going to be possible to try and deal with in a number of ways. The truth is that you can manage pain more effectively if you are aware of what you are doing and you think about some of the main ways that you can make use of these.
In this post, we are going to discuss some of the best ways to manage pain more effectively. As we will see, this very often depends on the type of pain and its severity, and everyone’s situation is slightly different. Nonetheless, it’s the kind of thing that you are always able to look at from a new angle and try to unpick. Let’s take a look.
Understand Your Pain
Not all pain is the same, that’s the first and main thing to be aware of. So it’s really important to understand your pain and what it is saying if you are going to try and manage it more effectively. It might be acute pain, such as when you have an injury and there is pain associated with that. Or you might have chronic pain, which is generally defined as lasting longer than a few months, although the definition of it can vary considerably. There is also something known as neuropathic pain, which is caused by nerve damage and requires a completely different kind of approach.
The point is that knowing your pain type is going to help considerably with being able to shape your treatment plan, so it’s hugely important to make sure that you are thinking about this. You might therefore want to think about keeping a pain journal, so you can track what you feel and when, and what seems to trigger it, as well as what seems to help it improve. This will also make it easier to talk to your doctor and to spot patterns yourself. The more you understand pain, the easier it is to deal with and to manage.
Combine Treatments
Usually pain management will work most effectively when it’s approached from more than one angle. There are a few that you might want to consider, and combining them will often mean that you are going to have the best possible chance of overcoming and effectively managing your pain. This might mean that you need to use some over-the-counter meds like your standard ibuprofen or paracetamol, for instance, as those are always going to be a good option to begin with for any pain. When it comes to chronic pain, doctors might recommend you something stronger, but there are also a lot of risks with long-term use of any drug, so it’s going to have to be part of a broader plan too.
As well as medication, you might find that you need to make use of some physical therapy. This refers to having some targeted exercises that can help to improve mobility, strengthen your muscles and reduce pain over time. It’s a long-term process and you are not necessarily going to feel any better after only a couple of sessions, but as long as you stick with it you should find that you are going to really notice a difference in the end. Of course, physical therapy needs to be carried out by a professional, and it’s something that you are going to have to get a lot of help with. But it is generally a really effective kind of process and you’ll find that it does help your pain reduction greatly, especially for back, joint, or post-surgery pain.
As well as those, you might also find that it helps to use a variety of what we might call mind-body techniques. This would include a meditation practice, or deep breathing, and these can actually be a lot more effective than people often think. The truth is that even just having a simple mindfulness practice is often going to be helpful here and you might find that you are going to have a much better chance of looking after yourself and improving your pain with these methods.
The thing about meditation is that it can fundamentally change your relationship to pain, rather than actually requiring the pain to be reduced in any kind of way. So you might get to a place where you can see pain as just a pattern of sensations that are not inherently problematic, and just realising that can lead to a serious kind of freedom around pain. So it can be very helpful indeed, and it’s the kind of technique that you should certainly think about.
And of course, you might also combine in with all this some alternative therapies. That might include something like acupuncture, massage or chiropractic care, which are all known to help people with their pain sometimes. You may also find that certain substances like marijuana can help, though you should check on the legality of it in your area before going down that route. However, it can be helpful for a lot of people, so it’s something to think about.
Movement
One of the main things that helps, though, is movement, and you will need to try and make sure that you are getting some movement when you are in pain. We used to think that having an injury meant you had to rest that part of your body for good until it recovers, but now we know that’s about the worst thing you can do. Actually, it’s much better to move it a little bit, and gradually improve that way – this is why physical therapy is so effective and beneficial.
Movement is not only helpful for injury pain, however, but for pain in general. Too much inactivity can make things worse with acute and chronic problems alike, so it’s true that some gentle and consistent movement can really work wonders. That might come in the form of walking, swimming or yoga for instance, all of which can help reduce stiffness and inflammation, and thereby improve the pain.
Get More Sleep
Ultimately you are seeking to recover from the cause of your pain, and your body always does most of its recovery during sleep. So the more sleep you can get, the better, and this is something that you really need to make sure you are thinking about if you want to keep your pain to a minimum and overcome the problem as soon as possible. If you are not getting enough sleep, anything you can do to help is going to be worthwhile.
There is often something of a tricky cycle here: you suffer in pain, so it makes it harder to sleep, so then you don’t get the recovery you need to overcome that pain. However, any small steps you can take towards better sleep is really going to be worthwhile.
Mental Health Matters
And finally, you’ll find that there is a strong link between your mental health and your experience of pain, so you should make sure that you are looking after your mental health as well. A lot of what we have looked at will help with this, in fact, but you should also ensure you are seeking therapy or any other similar treatments that might help here. That could make a world of difference.